BUTCHER BABIES' HEIDI SHEPHERD On 'Nightbloom' Album: 'The Writing Process Was Exactly The Same As It's Always Been'

In a new interview with the Illinois radio station 92.7 WQLZ, BUTCHER BABIES frontwoman Heidi Shepherd spoke about the lyrical inspiration for the band's upcoming album, "Nightbloom", which will arrive on October 2 via Judge & Jury Records. Asked if it was different working on music this time around with one vocalist, having split with co-singer Carla Harvey in early 2024, Heidi said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, it was a lot easier than you think it would be. The writing process is the exact same as it's always been, just a little bit more focused, I think.

"We started releasing songs from this album in 2024, and it was supposed to just be an EP," Heidi explained. "And we were just, like, 'Let's just try it and see how this comes about. We're working with a new label.' And we released that first song, and the embrace that we felt from our community, and the label was so happy. I mean, that song just grew legs and had a life of its own. And so we were, like, 'Let's see what else we can do.'

"We were on tour, and so we got to come home and actually focus and sit in our studio together, as we've always done for every single album that we've made, just sit in the studio together and just hammer out different ideas. And it all came together pretty organically and pretty naturally.

"One thing for me personally, when it comes to what the songs are about, I was going through just a lot of different changes myself," Heidi revealed. "I had never experienced therapy. I always probably should have gone. I think most artists probably could feel that same way. I always should have gone. And in January of 2024, I was, like, 'You know what? I'm gonna give this a shot. I just wanna try it and see.' And it was suggested to me, and I dove into therapy, and it just opened up a lot in my mind of memories and things that I had really suppressed, things that I didn't know were really holding on to my heart. And so it really was the perfect storm for writing for me. It was a perfect storm of creativity to be able to take a lot of these emotions from all these memories and being able to put pen to paper and actually turn some of these negative memories into huge positives. And that was something that I really didn't know that I needed in my life, and I'm super grateful that I was able to experience that. And now that all those writings and everything that I had beat myself up over for, like, 25 years, that's on 'Nightbloom'. That's on 'Nightbloom' now."

Shepherd added: "I got married when I was super, super young, and there's a song on there about the exact moment where we just [decided that] divorce was the answer. And there's songs on there about my growing up in the Mormon religion and coming of my own. There's songs on there about a very close friend of mine, when I was younger, at such a young age, took his own life. And it's these emotions and these things that I had been just allowing to fester in the back of my mind for so many years now put on to an album. And so this feels like it's not really a new era, but it's actually kind of diving into… I'm 41 years old, so it's diving into the last 30-plus years of my life. So I'm super excited for people to hear it.

"Being able to create this with Henry [Flury, BUTCHER BABIES guitarist] was really special, too, because there's a lot of these memories that I had never really spoken about with him, and we've been ball and chain for 15-plus years. So it was almost like a getting to know you for both of us and also me myself. I believe that therapy was probably the most important thing that I've done for myself, and I'm so glad that I can put it into reflection on this album."

"Nightbloom" was produced by acclaimed hitmaker Howard Benson, whose extensive credits include some of the biggest names in modern rock and metal (MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, SKILLET, DAUGHTRY, HALESTORM, etc.). Joe Rickard, Neil Sanderson and Henry Flury served as co-producers, while Cameron Pierce Mizell and Evan McKeever provided additional production on "Songbird".

When "Nightbloom" was first announced earlier this month, Shepherd commented: "A couple of years ago, I found myself in a web of darkness that I couldn't shake. A vicious cycle of self-loathing and doubt, all while my support system did everything in their power to remind me of who I am. I desperately wanted to see in myself what they saw in me. I needed a way to look in the mirror and find love for who was looking back at me. So, I shut off social media, and for the first time in my life, I started therapy."

"Therapy sent me down a rabbit hole that I didn't know existed," she continued. "Over the course of a year, I was flooded with memories of trauma and emotions that I had suppressed. I started to feel that in this overwhelming darkness, these memories needed a way out. So, I started writing. I wrote about my failure of a 'perfect' marriage over 20 years ago. I wrote about the stormy canyon road that sent us to divorce. I wrote about watching the love of my life fall in love with someone else in front of me. I wrote about a one-night stand that has haunted me for decades. I wrote about a former boyfriend who took his own life. I wrote about Mormon religion ostracizing me while their members, and my neighbors shamed my family for supporting me. And even more currently, I wrote the abandonment of losing a best friend of 20 years. I wrote about moments that I didn't realize held so much weight on my heart until we tore that fucker open in therapy.

"While reliving and experiencing some of my darkest moments, I started to finally bloom," she added. "These songs grew and took on life in the dark. In writing these songs, I was able to turn negative experiences in my life into something positive, which in turn gave these memories a new place to live. Moments that I can look at and think 'Wow, I survived that. I bloomed in the darkest moments of my life. My 'Nightbloom'.

"This new album isn't about the suffering; it's about the survival. These songs were born from memories of heartbreak, uncertainty, betrayal, and pain. But they're not just about those subjects, they're more about what grew because of them. This album, 'Nightbloom', is a reminder that not everything beautiful needs perfect sunshine to flourish. Sometimes the most meaningful parts of life begin in the darkest seasons."

Flury added: "Writing with purpose. That was the overall theme of this album. Each part, layer, lyric was crafted with purpose and focus. Nothing was unimportant. Every detail was created to tell a story with a singular voice. 'Nightbloom' is our most important work we've ever done in BUTCHER BABIES."

BUTCHER BABIES will continue their extensive 2026 world tour with a nationwide U.S. run alongside Chad Gray (MUDVAYNE, HELLYEAH) beginning in late summer and extending into the fall. The band will also appear at Louder Than Life in Kentucky.

BUTCHER BABIES played their first concert since the official departure of Harvey on July 27, 2024 at the Stonehenge festival in Steenwijk, The Netherlands.

BUTCHER BABIES press photo courtesy of O'Donnell Media Group